


In Madison

by TDKeh16



Series: Tumblr Fics and Prompts [26]
Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: First argument, Fluff, Fourth of July, Implied/Referenced Bullying, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Love Confessions, M/M, Madison - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-01
Updated: 2016-10-01
Packaged: 2018-08-18 22:58:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,129
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8178994
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TDKeh16/pseuds/TDKeh16
Summary: Jack visits Bitty in Madison for the 4th of July.





	

**Author's Note:**

> From the prompt: "Imagine your OTP getting in a fight and one of them yelling that they love the other one and then it gets really quiet."

Jack and Bitty were enjoying the break from the humid Madison heat inside the small ice cream shop. Bitty chirped his boyfriend playfully about the melted ice cream dripping down his hand and Jack pretended to be completely unaffected by the way Bitty licked his cone. It had been a great day so far, but that was about to change.

Something behind Jack caught Bitty's eye and his smile immediately faded. "Maybe we should leave..." Jack turned his head but Bitty swatted lightly at his arm. "Don't look. Let's just go."

Jack frowned. His boyfriend was acting strangely and it worried him. He obliged, and they went on their way to the next spot on Bitty's 'Must-See Madison' list. "Bitty..."

"What is it, sweetheart?" Bitty smiled again as he toured Jack around the empty high school compound.

"What was that back at the ice cream store? Why did we leave so quickly?"

"Just... Someone I didn't feel like seeing right now."

"Okay. Care to elaborate?" Jack pressed on. Bitty's troubled facial expression had returned.

The small blond let out a heavy sigh. "It was someone I went to school with. We bumped into each other a couple days ago, and we were never exactly friends to begin with."

"What happened?"

"He used to bully me a little, that's all."

"Was he the guy who trapped you in your locker overnight?"

"First of all, it was the utility closet -- and _**no**_  -- that happened in seventh grade. Can we please drop this?" Bitty took Jack by the hand and led him to the football field. "So, this is where Coach works," he said with a laugh in an attempt to change the subject.

"Bits..." Jack stopped walking, but kept his grasp of Bitty's hand, forcing him to stop as well. "Please... What happened? If it's bothering you--"

"You're sort of bothering me right now," Bitty huffed and turned on his heel to look at his boyfriend. "Fine. He made some stupid comments, called me _that_ f-word, I told him off. End of story." He tried to continue walking but Jack held tight. "Jack! I said I was fine, I just didn't feel like getting into it again with him and risk involving you too."

Jack had that angry look in his eye that Bitty had rarely seen since his first year at Samwell. He was furious. "Let's go back there. Right now. Maybe he hasn't left yet. I'll--"

"Jack, _no_..." Bitty shook his head with a sigh. "Just forget about it, okay?"

"Was it that guy with the brown hair and the camouflage shirt? It was, wasn't it. I thought he looked at us funny as we left. You shoulda told me that he had been picking on you, I would've--"

" _What_ , Jack? What? Beat him up for me? Enough, dammit! I don't need _you_ or anyone else fighting my battles, okay? I'm a man too, you know! I said I handled it!" Bitty exploded, yanking his hand away from Jack's grasp. It was nice that Jack and the Samwell guys always had his back and looked out for him, but after a certain point it hurt his pride -- _especially_ with Jack. They were dating now, he wanted Jack to see him as an equal not some 'damsel in distress' that needed a bigger man to come to his rescue.

Jack blinked and dropped his hand back to his side. "I'm just worried, Bits. What if he tries something after I leave and--"

"What difference does that make? I know I'm smaller than the rest of you guys but I can take care of myself. Drop it."

"But--"

"I never would have told you if I knew you'd worry this much..." Bitty turned and started walking away. He needed a moment to cool down, and not from the Georgia heat.

"Of course I'd worry." Jack followed hot on his heels. "I love you!"

Well, that did it. Bitty felt like all the air had left his lungs. "You... What did you say?" He slowly turned around. "You _love_ me?"

"Shit. This was _not_ the way I wanted to say it..." Jack gripped his forehead with one hand.

"I... What way did you plan to say it?" Bitty's heart was pounding so hard in his chest he was almost certain Jack would hear it.

"I thought maybe... tonight, during the fireworks. If we were able to sneak away from the crowd."

" _Tonight?_ Oh lord..." This was too much for Bitty to take in. Jack loved him? And he had been planning on telling him so during this visit, even without his accidental outburst? He knew his former captain enjoyed teasing him, but he would not joke about this. "Jack, honey. Are you _sure?_ "

A perplexed look crossed Jack's face. Bitty knew it, he was not entirely certain how he felt. That was okay, they had only been dating for a month and a half, and sure they had talked every night on skype but these things take more time than that. There was no rush and--

Jack leaned in and kissed him. When he pulled back, there was a gentle smile on his face. "I love you," Jack repeated. "I know it's early, and I don't expect you to say it back right now. That's okay. And I'm sorry to blurt it out like that in the middle of a fight, but... It's true. I love you, Bits... And I know you can handle some jerk in a camo shirt, but I would worry about you even if you were as big as Holster."

Bitty let out a snort of laughter as he wiped self-consciously at the tears in his eyes. Had Jack added that last line to lighten the mood or had it been sincere? Sometimes it was hard to tell with Jack. "Oh lord..." Bitty rested his forehead against his boyfriend's shoulder. "I love you so much."

Jack wrapped his arms around the blond man's back. The heat was stifling, but he did not mind in that moment. He turned his head to kiss the top of Bitty's hair, and smiled. "You do?"

"I have for a year."

They kissed once more before finally pulling apart, smiling at each other. "So, when you say you 'handled it,' what did you actually say to him?"

A devious grin crept across Bitty's lips and he gave Jack a couple light pats on his cheek. "I handled it, sweetheart. That's all you need to know." He took Jack by the hand again and continued their tour of his old high school grounds.

A small chill ran down Jack's back, less of a relief than it sounded in the intense heat, and he made a mental note never to get on Bitty's bad side...

**Author's Note:**

> I'll leave what Bitty did up to your imaginations. Don't mess with Bitty lol


End file.
